Jeremiah Blatz (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} jeremiahblatz) wrote,@ 2008-06-14 17:43:00 |
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Martial Arts Walkabout #7: Renzo Gracie Academy: Intro Class
Wednesday my shoulder was still a little sore (and not in a good way), so I took a rest day. On Thursday, I went to the Renzo Gracie Academy for an intro class. They said class was half an hour, so I didn't really know what to expect. I ran down (class was at 6:00), signed in and got changed. The guy in the office said that I should wait on the bench. There were four of us waiting on the bench, and about 50+ students lounging around chatting. Class started and the students started doing an extended version of the warm-up we did at Premier Martial Arts. After the first part of the warm-up, an instructor took us over to the back corner of the mat and explained that the intro class was a lecture on what Gracie JJ was about.
We explained that GJJ had 3 parts: takedowns, positions, and submissions. Takedowns were derived from JJJ and wrestling, whereas the other two were more unique to GJJ. He talked a little bit about all three parts and demonstrated bits of each on us. The class was half intro, half sales pitch, and felt a little odd to me. The tone was somewhere between confident and arrogant. Which, you know, is probably justified. However, given how famous the name is, it's probably a reasonable idea to go into how the style works. RGA is fairly traditional, almost all classes are with gi, and you're supposed to have your purple belt (~6 years) before starting MMA training. After the intro class, I asked about class structure. The instructor explained that classes start with a warmup, then several rounds of the instructor demonstrating a technique and students paring up and practicing it, and then finishing with some free-rolling.
After the intro class, we sat one-on-one with the guy in the office. They seemed to have a fair amount of screening, asking if people currently work out, how often they're willing to train, etc. I didn't really have questions about rates, etc, and I was pleased that the guy was very encouraging of my walkabout, and encouraged me to try a class, despite the fact that it would be a long time before I even considered signing up.
At my time there, I did develop a few impressions. One, the mats were really, really nice. Everywhere else I've been the mats were kinda hard and textured, good for standup and throws. However, my inexperienced extremities have lost a lot of skin, particularly on the tops of my feet. The mats at RGA were soft and deep, and had a smooth covering. The other thing I noticed was that it was very male. In the blue-purple belt class I watched, there was not a single woman. There were definitely girls in the muay thai classes, but i didn't see more than a couple in gis. The atmosphere was pretty boyish, too, people would greet each other by sneaking up behind and slapping on a friendly rear naked choke, etc. It wasn't really macho, everyone was open and friendly and chatting, but it was definitely overwhelmingly male.
Anyway, I'm definitely going back for a trial class.
Wednesday my shoulder was still a little sore (and not in a good way), so I took a rest day. On Thursday, I went to the Renzo Gracie Academy for an intro class. They said class was half an hour, so I didn't really know what to expect. I ran down (class was at 6:00), signed in and got changed. The guy in the office said that I should wait on the bench. There were four of us waiting on the bench, and about 50+ students lounging around chatting. Class started and the students started doing an extended version of the warm-up we did at Premier Martial Arts. After the first part of the warm-up, an instructor took us over to the back corner of the mat and explained that the intro class was a lecture on what Gracie JJ was about.
We explained that GJJ had 3 parts: takedowns, positions, and submissions. Takedowns were derived from JJJ and wrestling, whereas the other two were more unique to GJJ. He talked a little bit about all three parts and demonstrated bits of each on us. The class was half intro, half sales pitch, and felt a little odd to me. The tone was somewhere between confident and arrogant. Which, you know, is probably justified. However, given how famous the name is, it's probably a reasonable idea to go into how the style works. RGA is fairly traditional, almost all classes are with gi, and you're supposed to have your purple belt (~6 years) before starting MMA training. After the intro class, I asked about class structure. The instructor explained that classes start with a warmup, then several rounds of the instructor demonstrating a technique and students paring up and practicing it, and then finishing with some free-rolling.
After the intro class, we sat one-on-one with the guy in the office. They seemed to have a fair amount of screening, asking if people currently work out, how often they're willing to train, etc. I didn't really have questions about rates, etc, and I was pleased that the guy was very encouraging of my walkabout, and encouraged me to try a class, despite the fact that it would be a long time before I even considered signing up.
At my time there, I did develop a few impressions. One, the mats were really, really nice. Everywhere else I've been the mats were kinda hard and textured, good for standup and throws. However, my inexperienced extremities have lost a lot of skin, particularly on the tops of my feet. The mats at RGA were soft and deep, and had a smooth covering. The other thing I noticed was that it was very male. In the blue-purple belt class I watched, there was not a single woman. There were definitely girls in the muay thai classes, but i didn't see more than a couple in gis. The atmosphere was pretty boyish, too, people would greet each other by sneaking up behind and slapping on a friendly rear naked choke, etc. It wasn't really macho, everyone was open and friendly and chatting, but it was definitely overwhelmingly male.
Anyway, I'm definitely going back for a trial class.
